What
The Spring Equinox is the fourth of the 24 Chinese solar terms, usually on March 20 or 21 every year. On this day, day and night are equally divided again - 12 hours each of day and night. After the Spring Equinox, the days begin to be longer than the nights. For the Chinese, the Spring Equinox is the "fairest" day - the balance of yin and yang, the equal division of day and night.
Why
Why is the Spring Equinox so important?
- Astronomical reasons: The vernal equinox is the day when the sun shines directly on the equator. From this day on, the sun moves northward and the days begin to lengthen in the Northern Hemisphere. The vernal equinox is the critical point of "yin and yang transition" - before this, yin rises and yang wanes; after that, yang rises and yin wanes.
- Agricultural reasons: The vernal equinox is a critical period for spring plowing. "When wheat rises on the vernal equinox, a moment is worth a thousand pieces of gold." Wheat in the north begins to "joint" (grow rapidly), and rice in the south begins to grow seedlings. During the vernal equinox, farmers have to "scramble for time" - if they miss the vernal equinox, the year's harvest will be affected.
- Cultural reasons: The vernal equinox is a symbol of "balance" for the Chinese. Yin and Yang, day and night, cold and heat - the vernal equinox is the "middle point" of these opposites. What the Chinese learned from the Spring Equinox is a kind of "impartial" wisdom.
How
Three major customs of the Spring Equinox:
- Erect eggs: "The spring equinox is here, and the eggs are pretty." On the Spring Equinox, Chinese people play the game of "Egg Standing" - putting eggs upright on the table. It is said that on the vernal equinox, the Earth's gravity is most balanced and eggs stand upright most easily. This game is not a "scientific experiment", but a "ritual" - symbolizing the "balance" and "stability" of spring.
- Eat spring vegetables: The vernal equinox is the same as the beginning of spring. You must eat "spring vegetables". But the spring vegetables of the vernal equinox pay more attention to "balance" - shepherd's purse, toona sinensis, malantou, and various wild vegetables mixed together. The "spring vegetables" of the Spring Equinox are not "eating fresh", but "eating balanced".
- Kite Flying: The Spring Equinox is the best time to fly kites. The ancients believed that flying kites can "let go of bad luck" - "release" all the bad luck of the year into the sky. Flying a kite during the Spring Equinox is "psychological healing" - watching the kite fly into the sky will lift your mood.
When
The best scene of the Spring Equinox: fields at dusk. The sun sets due west and the sky is dyed orange-red. The wheat seedlings in the fields swayed in the breeze, and farmers stood on the ridges of the fields, looking at their crops. This is a time of "balance" - day and night, work and rest, effort and gain, all reach perfect balance on this day.
Where
At Giaokz.com in Florence, we prepare "Equinox Salad" on the day of the Spring Equinox - a mixture of various wild vegetables. The Italian guest said: "Isn't this our insalata di campo?" I said: "Yes, but our salad adds 'balance' - on the day of the Spring Equinox, yin and yang are balanced and everything is in harmony."
One Word
fen (fΔn)
The "Vernal Equinox" means "equal division". But this "division" is not "division", but "balance". The vernal equinox divides spring into two halves, and also divides day and night into two halves. What the Chinese learned from the Spring Equinox is a kind of wisdom of "the golden mean" - being impartial, not falling short, and just right. Europeans' "equinox" means "astronomical phenomenon", and Chinese people's "equinox" means "life philosophy".
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> π‘ Remember the Vernal Equinox in one sentence: The Vernal Equinox is the "fairest day" - balance of yin and yang, equal division of day and night, and harmony of all things.